---
title: 'Telco SRE Engineer at AST SpaceMobile'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/telco-sre-engineer-ast-spacemobile-riga-cecfzawvgtfx'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-12'
---

# Telco SRE Engineer at AST SpaceMobile

- **Company:** AST SpaceMobile
- **Location:** Riga, Latvia
- **Posted:** 2026-09-10
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-12
- **Apply:** https://ast-science.com/company/careers/?gh_jid=4732704005

## Job description

AST SpaceMobile is building the first and only global cellular broadband network in space to operate directly with standard, unmodified mobile devices based on our extensive IP and patent portfolio and designed for both commercial and government applications. Our engineers and space scientists are on a mission to eliminate the connectivity gaps faced by today’s five billion mobile subscribers and finally bring broadband to the billions who remain unconnected.

Position Overview

We are looking for SRE/DevOps to join our AST’s Telco Software Development team to design and develop innovative telco software solutions and components. This is a hands-on engineering role for engineers who are motivated by building genuinely novel software in a fast-moving, greenfield environment. You will be embedded in a small, high-ownership team where your code ships into real network infrastructure, and where the technical decisions you contribute to will directly shape AST’s long-term differentiation. Candidates may come from a software engineering background (strong systems and backend, ideally with telecom exposure) or from other related engineering domains with solid software development skills.

Key Responsibilities:

- Design and implement GitOps-driven infrastructure on Kubernetes using ArgoCD for continuous deployment and declarative infrastructure management
- Develop Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) solutions for telco infrastructure using Terraform and CloudFormation
- Build and optimize GitOps pipelines for automated, auditable infrastructure and application deployments
- Manage containerized workloads on Kubernetes clusters supporting LTE/5G core and RAN services
- Implement and optimize monitoring, logging, and alerting systems using Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, and similar tools
- Translate architectural specifications, interface control documents (ICDs), and functional & non-functional requirements into clean, well-tested, production-ready code
- Automate operational tasks to reduce manual toil and improve system reliability through declarative configuration management
- Document infrastructure architecture, runbooks, and standard operating procedures
- Collaborate with network engineers and software teams to ensure seamless infrastructure integration

## Qualifications

Education:

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Telecommunications Engineering, or a related field — or equivalent professional experience.

Experience:

A minimum of 3+ years of DevOps/SRE production experience – exposure to telecom or network related development projects is a plus.

- Strong proficiency with Kubernetes, GitOps (ArgoCD), and containerization on AWS, Azure, or GCP
- Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform, CloudFormation) and declarative CI pipelines (Azure pipelines, GitLab CI, or similar)
- Networking fundamentals
- Scripting/automation (Python, Bash, Go) and operations: monitoring (Prometheus, Grafana, ELK), security, compliance
- Demonstrated problem-solving ability and ownership mindset
- English proficiency at B2 level or above; able to collaborate effectively with peers and architects in a globally distributed team

Preferred Qualifications:

- Advanced GitOps patterns: multi-tenancy, multi-cluster, progressive delivery (Argo Rollouts); familiarity with Flux or alternative frameworks
- Service mesh expertise (Istio, Linkerd) in containerized environments
- Deep telco domain knowledge: RAN (gNodeB, CU/DU), 5G Core (5GC, network slicing), LTE Core (EPC, MME), BSS/OSS platforms
- 5G SA/NSA architectures, NFV, and network function testing
- SDN, OpenFlow, and edge computing (MEC) fundamentals
- Previous experience at telecommunications carrier or major telco vendor
- Relevant certifications (Kubernetes, AWS, GCP, or telco-specific)

Soft Skills:

- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills - able to break down complex, under-defined problems and deliver working software iteratively
- High ownership mentality - take personal responsibility for the quality and correctness of your own work, not just task completion
- Collaborative and communicative - actively participates in design discussions, code reviews, and cross-functional conversations
- Curious and self-directed - proactively learns domain context (telecom protocols, network architecture) beyond what is immediately required for the next ticket
- Comfortable with ambiguity and greenfield work - able to operate effectively when specifications are evolving and there is no legacy codebase to reference
- Attention to detail in code quality, test coverage, and documentation

Technology Stack:

Deployment & Container Orchestration:

- Kubernetes (EKS, on-premises)
- Helm, Kustomize (package management and templating)
- ArgoCD, Flux (GitOps continuous deployment)

Infrastructure & IaC:

- Terraform, CloudFormation (infrastructure-as-code)
- AWS: EC2, ECS, EKS, VPC, networking
- Linux

CI/CD & Version Control:

- Azure pipelines, GitLab CI (declarative pipelines)
- Git (version control, branching strategies)

Observability & Monitoring:

- Prometheus, Grafana (metrics collection and visualization)
- ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana) for logging
- Datadog, New Relic (APM and distributed tracing)

Telco Infrastructure:

- 3GPP standards and specifications
- RAN: gNodeB, eNodeB, CU/DU split architectures
- 5G Core: 5GC, network slicing, service-based architecture (SBA)
- LTE Core: EPC, MME, SGW, PGW
- OSS/BSS platforms and network management systems

Programming & Scripting:

- Python, Bash, Go
- REST API design and integration

Physical Requirements

- Ability to work in a standard office or remote home-office environment and use a computer for extended periods
- Ability to participate in occasional after-hours incident response actions

This job description may not be inclusive to the duties and responsibilities listed. Additional tasks may be assigned to the employee from time to time or the scope of the job may change as needed by business demands. AST SpaceMobile is an Equal Opportunity, at will Employer; employment is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

## About AST SpaceMobile

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: AST SpaceMobile is building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by standard, unmodified smartphones.
- **Entity Type**: Public (Nasdaq: ASTS)
- **Headquarters**: Midland, Texas, USA
- **Founded**: 2017
- **Founders**: Abel Avellan

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Space-based telecommunications / Satellite broadband
- **Target customers**: B2B (mobile network operators), B2C (indirectly through MNOs), and government/defense agencies
- **Mission**: To eliminate connectivity gaps faced by today’s nearly six billion mobile subscribers and bring broadband to the billions who remain unconnected using a space-based cellular network.

## Products & Services
- **[SpaceMobile Network]**: A space-based cellular broadband network that delivers 4G/5G connectivity directly to standard smartphones without any hardware modifications, apps, or software updates.
- **[BlueBird Satellites]**: The company’s commercial satellite constellation, designed to provide full broadband coverage globally. BlueBird satellites are among the largest commercial communications arrays in low Earth orbit.
- **[BlueWalker 3]**: The prototype satellite used to demonstrate world-first voice, 5G, and video calls from space to ordinary phones.
- **[Government & Defense Solutions]**: Tailored connectivity for tactical and public safety applications (e.g., FirstNet tests, government contracts).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Market capitalization exceeded $8 billion as of August 2024 (stock price ~$38.60). More recent figures are not publicly available but the company has raised over $2 billion as of Q2 2025.
- **Key Metric (Total Funding)**: Over $2 billion raised (debt and equity) as of Q2 2025.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Vodafone, Rakuten, American Tower, Samsung Next, Cisneros, Google (product partnership), AT&T, Verizon, FirstNet Authority.
- **Growth Signals**:
  - Partnerships with nearly 60 mobile network operators covering ~3 billion combined subscribers.
  - Successfully completed first VoLTE voice calls, video calls, and 5G data connections using standard smartphones via satellite.
  - First public safety tests on FirstNet (Jan 2024) and first activation for government defense use cases (June 2025).
  - Commercial contract with Vodafone through 2034 for Europe and Africa.
  - 578 employees as of 2024; expanding manufacturing and office footprint globally.

## Competitive Advantages
- **First-mover**: Only company offering direct-to-smartphone satellite broadband with no specialized hardware or software required.
- **Patent Moat**: Over 3,800 patents and pending claims protecting proprietary technology.
- **MNO Integration**: Deep partnerships with major global operators enable seamless integration with existing terrestrial networks.
- **Satellite Scale**: BlueBird satellites feature large phased-array antennas (BlueWalker 3 array is 693 sq ft), providing a field of view over 300,000 sq miles.

## Strategic Focus
- **Constellation Deployment**: Rapidly launching and operationalizing the BlueBird satellite fleet to start generating significant commercial revenue.
- **Global Coverage Expansion**: Targeting full service across multiple continents, with a focus on remote and underserved regions.
- **Government & Defense**: Broadening contracts for secure, tactical connectivity.
- **Technology Advancement**: Continued R&D on next-generation satellite capabilities and network optimization.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Fast-growing company with a startup mindset; employees are encouraged to wear many hats and tackle meaningful challenges.
- **Global Presence**: Offices in Midland (TX), Homestead (FL), Miami (FL), Lanham (MD), Tel Aviv, Barcelona, Edinburgh, Hyderabad, and other locations.
- **Impact**: Opportunity to work on a historic transformation in global connectivity, directly connecting billions of people.
- **Perks & Environment**: Nearly 500,000 sq ft of manufacturing and office facilities; emphasis on innovation, autonomy, and cross-disciplinary collaboration.
- **Career Growth**: Open positions listed on Greenhouse; values proactive, passionate innovators.

## Sources
1. [AST SpaceMobile Official Website](https://ast-science.com)
2. [AST SpaceMobile Company Page](https://ast-science.com/company/)
3. [AST SpaceMobile Careers Page](https://ast-science.com/company/careers/)
4. [AST SpaceMobile Investor Relations](https://investors.ast-science.com/)
5. [Wikipedia – AST SpaceMobile](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AST_SpaceMobile)

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